There they found Hawk-Eye. He was working away at the log of a good-sized tree which he had cut down. He had made the log almost flat on one side by chipping off pieces with his axe, and he had shaped the ends a little. Now he was hollowing out the inside. He was doing this partly with his axe and partly by burning it.
Hawk-Eye was working so busily he did not know that any one was near him until Firetop called out, “What are you making, Father?”
Hawk-Eye stopped chopping. “It’s a secret,” he said. “If I tell you, you’ll tell.”
“No, we won’t. Anyway, there’s no one to tell but Mother,” said Firefly.
“She’s just the one I want to keep it from,” said Hawk-Eye. “It’s a surprise.”
“Oh, well, if it is a surprise, of course we won’t tell,” said Firetop.
“Do you know what it is, or is it a surprise to you too?” asked Firefly.
“Maybe it is,” said Hawk-Eye. “I’m not sure yet. When I get the inside of this log all cut out, I’m going to see if it will float without rolling over. Maybe I can get in it and make it go where I want it to. If I can, then all sorts of things may happen, but you must not tell Mother.”
“Why?” asked Firefly. “Wouldn’t she let you play with it?”
“Maybe not,” said Hawk-Eye.